This invention is directed to a chopping assembly, and more particularly to a chopping assembly that provides mechanical control of moving chopped product throughout the system.
Chopping assemblies are known in the art for processing corn stalks and other crops for a desired use. Typically, a stover chopping assembly is mounted to a harvesting corn header and includes a blade assembly disposed within a housing in communication with a discharge channel or conduit that leads to a conveyor. While useful, chopped crop product occasionally plugs in the discharge conduit especially in difficult, wet conditions or material is lost from the chopper when moved through an open space between the chopper and conveyor such as with the product design used by Geringhoff. When a plug occurs the operation of the header and combine is halted and often the operator must manually remove a plug, leading to lost time and considerable interruption of the harvesting operation. The plug removal usually requires the operator to leave the cab of the combine, thus creating more delay and effort. Providing a system that limits or eliminates lost material while providing plug-free operation or easy unplugging therefore is needed.
Thus, an object of the present invention is to provide a chopping assembly where a harvester need not be slowed or stopped to remove a plug in a discharge conduit.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a chopping assembly where plugs are removed automatically, without manual assistance, in a process of header reversal that is used to unplug areas of the header not associated with the chopper.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a means of transport that has no part of the transport path of the chopped material where it is moved solely by momentum or air and movement is always being controlled by a mechanical means.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a mechanical transport means that has open paths for material coming off of the chopping knives to go directly to the conveyor without solely mechanical movement.